The Cabinet, during its meeting on 11th June, approved the Tipitaka English Version Project as a tribute to His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Phra Vajiraklaochaoyuhua on the occasion of his coronation and proclamation of himself as the Royal Patron of Buddhism.
Tripitaka is the collection of the teachings of the Buddha over 45 years in the Pali language, and it consists of Sutta – conventional teaching, Vinaya – disciplinary code, and Abhidhamma – moral psychology.
His Majesty the King performed his coronation on 4-6 May 2019. During the coronation ceremony, he proceeded to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha to proclaim himself the Royal Patron of Buddhism.
The Tipitaka English Version Project is being carried out jointly by the Ministry of Culture, the Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand, and the National Office of Buddhism.
Under this project, the Tipitaka in the Pali language with Thai script will be translated into English. The Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand has agreed with the formation of a committee to carry out this project.
The committee comprises representatives from the Ministry of Culture through the Religious Affairs Department, the Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand, and the National Office of Buddhism.
From 2020 to 2021, the Tipitaka will be translated into English by the committee approved by the Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand. The Tipitaka in the English version will be published from 2021 to 2022.
The Ministry of Culture, which proposed this project to the Cabinet for approval, reported that the project will sustain the existence of Buddhism in both Thailand and the world community. Moreover, Thais and foreigners alike will be able to adopt Buddhist principles in the Tipitaka to their daily life.
